Channel crossings

October 22, 2013

Billy Brown of Kauai and Morgan Hoestry, who accompanied him on a paddleboard, pose for a photo during Brown’s swim from Molokai to Lanai and back on Sunday. Brown’s team reported a completion of the swim across the Kalohi Channel, which covered more than 18 miles, in 10 hours, 26 minutes. “It was a great swim in perfect conditions,” Brown said. “I was nervous — this is my eighth channel swim, but by far my longest.” Brown began at approximately 3:30 a.m., and said that he was accompanied for part of the trip by a marlin, starting at daybreak. “Every five or 10 minutes, he would swim underneath me, circle me,” he said. “It was a little freaky. He was there a good 45-50 minutes.”LAUREN GRISWOLD photo